Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition on behalf of hundreds of citizens in Madawaska—Restigouche concerning the elimination of waiting periods. The petitioners are calling on the Conservative government to be more understanding of the situation facing workers, especially seasonal workers, and to finally eliminate the waiting period that people must deal with every year, depending the kind of work they do.

Their petition is identical to what is called for in my private member's bill, Bill C-263, which calls for the elimination of waiting periods. The reasoning behind it is very easy to understand. We are asking the minority Conservative government to understand that people have rent or a mortgage to pay, not to mention utility and grocery bills, in order to provide for their families. As we all know, when no money is coming in, it is very difficult to meet our family's needs.

Thus, the petitioners are calling on the minority Conservative government to eliminate waiting periods for employment insurance benefits, to allow Canadians across the country to live better.

Mr. Speaker, first I wish to thank my colleague from Beauséjour for supporting this bill.

Today, I am proud and honoured to introduce this bill, which will help improve the lives of seasonal workers. The purpose of the bill is to eliminate the two-week waiting period that precedes payment of employment insurance benefits. After taking into account the best weeks in previous years, these changes to the Employment Insurance Act will enable seasonal workers to receive employment benefits more quickly.

For several months, I have been working hard in order to introduce this bill in the House of Commons so that the employment insurance system can best meet the needs of seasonal workers.

We are at the first reading stage and I hope that the government will support workers by passing this bill. This program is of vital importance in my riding.

I am therefore very proud of my efforts on behalf of the citizens of Madawaska—Restigouche.